Yay long weekend! It was so great to have Friday and Monday off, it’s amazing how much you can get done when you have an extra day off. My weekend was filled with good food, good conversation and some nice relaxing days. My weekend started off by picking up and installing my new bike wheels, it was a very exciting day! I was amazed at how easily I was able to get the new tires on and get them on my bike. I felt like a real bike pro!
Champlain Lookout
Sunday was our busiest day of the weekend. I really wanted to get out to Gatineau Park and try out my new wheels on the hills but Monday was supposed to rain and we had plans for the rest of the day. So I got up at 6:30am, put my bike on the car and drove up to P3. If you’ve never cycled in Gatineau Park you should give it a try. The route to Champlain Lookout is a very popular route that takes you from P3 to Champlain Lookout. Not only is it very scenic but it’s also a great place to do hill training. The route is around 36km long and includes about 825m of ascent. The hardest hill, King’s Hill, seems to go on forever! The first half of the ride takes a lot longer then the way back and it’s tough! The reward is Champlain Lookout, which offers an amazing view on the Ottawa River, it is especially beautiful in the fall. The way back from the lookout is fun! All the hills that you needed to climb on the way out, you get to fly down on the way back. This weekend I got up to speeds of 70km/h!
Map to Champlain Lookout - Thanks Garmin!
Outside of my bike ride I didn’t do too much training because I am feeling under the weather but I did have lots of good food! On Sunday we went to the Wakefield Mill for brunch to celebrate Easter and my mom’s birthday (happy birthday mom!) and then had a turkey dinner at Sarah’s parent’s place. Last night we tried a new recipe, which was really good! I found the recipe on the 220triathlon.com website. What impressed me the most about the recipe was the gravy. The gravy is only soya sauce, water and onion. I thought it would be really salty and only taste like soya sauce but it was delicious! Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Garlic Chicken Thighs with Colcannon Mash and Onion Gravy
Ingredients:
- 4 chicken thighs, skin removed
- 160g savoy, or similar, cabbage
- 6 whole cloves of garlic, not peeled
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 30ml dark soy sauce
- 600g potatoes
- 200ml water
- 60-100ml milk, for the mash
- Salt and pepper, optional
Instructions:
- Cut the potatoes into small chunks and place in a saucepan. Simmer for approximately 10minutes, until soft but not falling apart.
- While the potatoes are cooking, heat a little oil in the frying pan and add the chicken thighs and garlic cloves. Cook for approximately 5mins on each side until golden brown.
- Drain the potatoes, keeping 200ml of the potato-cooking water for the gravy. Add this to the soy sauce in a small pan and simmer with the sliced onion for approximately 10mins.
- Blanch the cabbage for 2mins, and lightly crush the potatoes. Season and add a little milk to soften the mix, and then add the cabbage to finish the ‘colcannon’ mash.
- Now plate the mash with the chicken and garlic cloves on top, with the onion gravy around the side
Adventures of an Ottawa Foodie 